Go see Man Man
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Artist:
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Album:Six Demon Bag, The Man with the Blue Turban
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Track:Black Mission Goggles, Zebra
Man Man played Northampton last night, a bigger club than the other two times I've seen them there, absolutely packed with crazy kids...and it was absolutely the best show I've ever seen them play. They're just starting their tour now, hitting Boston again tonight, then NYC area and after that I don't really know, but Jenny Tatone posted tour dates about a week ago, and you can also check their web page www.wearemanman.comYou would think that it would be better to see a band in an obscuro experimental 50-person-limit art space than at a big crowded commercial venue, but you would be wrong. The thing is that Man Man feeds off crowd energy in a big way, and this was an insanely into-it crowd. sure, they were reacting more to Six Demon Bag material than The Man in the Blue Turban with a Face, and yes, they got a little bit out-of-hand with the screaming in each other's faces and dropped one crowd surfer on his head. But, look, if you're going to wear white face paint, and throw spoons at drums and beat on pots and pans and play two saxophones at once and bark like a shaman dog, you want the crowd to be with you. It was. I talked to Honus after the show a little, and he said that they had most of a third album written and were looking to go to Chicago to record later in the year. They're also looking pretty actively for a larger label...so if there are any suit-and-ponytail types out there thinking about the next big thing, two words (or is it one?): Man Man.I've done a crapload of writing about Man Man, so I'm putting in some links in case you long to know more:Six Demon Bag review in Neumuhttp://neumu.net/fortyfour/2006/2006-00017/2006-00017_fortyfour.shtmlFeature in PopMatters (this year)http://www.popmatters.com/music/interviews/man-man-060206.shtmlFeature in Splendid (two years ago. BTW, Honus says he never said that stuff about Chicago and he's probably right. It was a lousy tape.) http://www.splendidmagazine.com/features/manman/Man in a Blue Turban reviewhttp://www.splendidezine.com/review.html?reviewid=1101120899367687But really, stop reading stuff and go to one of the shows. You'll be smiling for days.jk
Comments (5)
I'm not sure that you will be that keen on the latest Roommate album, but I think you will dig the next one. I'm working on a more organic sound, with more real instruments to complement the computer stuff. If all goes well, Mr. Devin Davis will play a couple of parts on it--maybe a little guitar, maybe a little theremin...
I do indeed know the Love Story in Blood Red guys. I know Jim and Nick from playing in Devin's band, and . Jim actually played drums in Roommate once--check out our cover of Dusty Springfield's "No Easy Way Down" (feat. Devin on guitar) here.
I had the pleasure of opening for Man Man in Somerville, MA in June. It was a pretty small room and their energy was amazing. It's good to know that they can maintain the fever in a much bigger space.
Thanks for saying hey!